Bound By Blood
by DeMonte Writes
Summary: Liz, despite her cleverness and resourcefulness, lacks what people call common sense. Most people would run away when a portal opens in front of them. This idiot, in her drug-induced state, jumped in headfirst. Now she's in an unfamiliar land far away from the protection of her aunt. It's as limitless as it is nerve-racking.
1. Chapter 1: No thanks

_**Summary**_: Liz, despite her cleverness and resourcefulness, lacks what people call common sense. Most people would run away when a portal opens in front of them. This idiot, in her drug-induced state, jumped in headfirst. Now she's in an unfamiliar land far away from the protection of her aunt. It's as limitless as it is nerve-racking.

**A/N: Just a heads up, this will roughly follow Hyperdimension Neptunia ReBirth 2. Give or take. It starts about 2 years before it though. **

**Chapter One: Shock is one Helluva Drug**

Brilliant shades of gold and orange painted the sky as the sun rose for another day. Golden light dribbled over the land as the rays slowly covered the starry sky. The birds sang a lovely melody that grated on the nerves of one individual that had hoped to sleep through the day.

The soft rays of the morning sun hit her sleeping face, much to her annoyance. Her head felt like it was about to explode. Or implode. It just really fucking hurt. And the fact that it felt like she was laying on rocks wasn't helping. Neither are does damn birds.

"You've got to be kidding me," the 17-year-old groaned, rubbing her face. She felt like shit. She probably smells like shit too. A nice shower seemed really heavenly right now?

Maybe a gallon of water with a sandwich, too.

But was getting up really worth it?

Liz's dry mouth and empty stomach said yes, much to her dismay. Now that she was awake, her bed wasn't as comfortable anymore. It actually felt strangely hard.

Opening her eyes was a struggle. The sun's bright rays made it difficult to open them, so was a good thing that it was still early morning. After a few good seconds, her eyes were blessed with the beauty of the mighty colors of red and gold that splashed the sky.

Wait.

Liz rubbed her eyes and looked again.

Where _was _she?

"How the?" She muttered, slowly sitting up, her amber eyes scanned her surroundings… No wonder why she felt like she slept like shit. She was outside, not in her bedroom. And she wasn't even in the park near her house. This looked like a forest. Trees and bushes everywhere.

What the hell did she do last night?

"Fuckin' hell," Liz rubbed her head as the pounding in her head reminded her of her headache. Aight, so retracing her steps might be a pain but necessary.

So she got home, worked on some of her projects for class, after that, she went to Aphrodite's, got laid, went to the studio to work on a few tracks with Jas and Dre. It was a Saturday, so they went to Sinner's Heaven and got fucked up.

Liz smacked her head. She probably took a few wrong buses home. Houston doesn't even have forests.

"Well, layin' around ain't gettin' me nowhere," The blonde stretch a bit before slowly getting to her feet. Her head still hurt like a bitch, but she kinda has to push through it for now.

Oddly enough, Liz still had most of her things on her. Her watch, bracelets, necklace, rings, phone, mp3 player, headphones, and backpack with her. The only thing she was missing was her backpack, which had her laptop, launchpad soundboard, and a few binders with notes. Honestly, she would not be surprised if her bag was stolen- nevermind, it was behind her.

The fact that she still had all her belongings slightly unnerved Liz. No one tried to mug her?

Pulling out her phone, she saw that she had no signal. There goes that plan. Maybe an emergency call?

Dialing 911 proved to be fruitless. The phone only rang a few times before it said the phone number was currently unavailable.

Bitch.

"Aight, guess I'm walkin' then," At least Liz had her music to listen to. Connecting her headphones to her mp3 player, she instinctively began to listen to her a random album.

Was it wise to waste her limited phone battery on songs? No. Was that going to stop her? Negative.

_**~*~*~*~*~*~*One playing of **_**Hamilton**_** later~*~*~*~*~*~***_

Liz smiled as the chilling cello and violins began singing a jazzy ballad. Honestly, she found it hard to believe this musical didn't get on Broadway sooner. A jazzy retelling of a love that never dies? Sign her the fuck up.

The teenager checked her phone for the fifth time. Unsurprisingly, it still had no signal.

"Weird, Cricket works well in any part of Texas," That might not be true, but for her, it worked just about anywhere.

She put her phone back into her pocket as she continued to be seduced by the singer's deep voice. There's just something ruggedly beautiful about Mr, Page's intoxicating singing. It reminded her of thick chocolate. And the way the girl's almost angelic sing contrasted against his, she just loved it. Hell, if a man with that kinda deep, smooth vocals came singing to sign her life away, she'd probably do it, too.

"See how the _vultures _and _vipers _surround you," She accented tried imitating the smoothness of Page but failed. She wasn't a bad singer by all means, but she wasn't a good one either. At least when it came to Jazzy songs. Her voice just wasn't made for soft singing. Rap and alternative rock were more of her forte.

"Aight, that's enough of broadway for now," Liz pulled her phone out as the song fades._ Hamilton_ had finished playing a few songs ago, so she guessed that about an hour and a half has passed. "Huh. You'd think that there'd be at least _one _house in the middle of nowhere," She mumbled under her breath.

Stopping the next song from playing, Liz stopped dead in her tracks as she heard the rumbling of bushes next to her. Her blue eyes caught a hint of a grey in between the green leaves. A low, menacing growl was the only warning she got before the grey pounced, fangs and claws bared.

Instinctively, she dropped low as a claw barely scraped a few strands of her blonde hair, "HOLY FUCK!" Before the beast had the chance to try again, Liz immediately took off. She needs to put some distance between her and that thing. No way in hell as she going to fight a big ass fucking wolf.

A loud howl was she heard before the crunching of leaves drew closer.

Fuck.

Can that thing climb trees?

Taking a quick glance back, she saw the wolf drawing dangerously close.

Shit, shit, shit.

"_**TIA!**_" That's all she could do besides run. Scream for help. Liz ain't too proud to call for help, "_**TIA! ANYONE!**_" Especially when it's her life on the line.

No time to think.

Through a series of sharp turns and slides, the blonde had managed to narrowly avoid the beast's claws from each of its jumps.

"C'mon! C'mon!" She panted as she struggled to keep up with her legs. She didn't know how long she had been running, but it was starting to take its toll on her. Liz was a short distance runner. "FUCK!" A dead end.

Skiing to a halt, she turned around and saw that there was some distance between the wolf and her.

Looking up the rocky slope, Liz saw that it was pretty tall. It doesn't look like an easy climb either.

Pressing her back to the stone wall, she stared at the wolf as it slowly approached her.

"N-nice doggie?" whimpered as the wolf prepared to pounce. Liz covered her face with her arms n a vain attempt to make her life last a little bit longer.

Y'know, Liz always thought she'd be shot down while running or stabbed in an alleyway. Being killed by a wolf honestly didn't seem like a bad way to die.

A second passed. Then two.

...

Is it going to kill her or not?

Slowly lowering her arms, she saw who caused her delay: a short brown haired girl wearing an oversized jacket had knocked the wolf off course mid-jump.

Jumping in front of her, the brunette bared her swords(?) and pointed them towards the beast, "You okay?"

"N-never been better," She stuttered as she struggled to stand. Her heart was still pounding in her head, "S-shit," At least her head wasn't hurting anymore.

Much to Liz's horror, the wolf quickly recovered and howled.

"You stay there, I'll handle this," the girl commanded.

Don't need to tell her twice. Anyone that can knock down that big ass thing was worth listening to.

"DEMONIC INFERNO"

As the wolf tried to pounce in the direction of its next meal, a magical circle appeared under it.

A what? Liz was really tempted to book it and start climbing. This looked like some satanic shit and honestly, she didn't want to pay her dues just yet.

Fire engulfed the beast, turning into nothing but ash.

"Woah," Her legs gave out. The blonde didn't know how to feel. The child in her wanted to gush in amazement at what she saw. Real fucking magic. Like the one, she read about in Mama's old library. Her logical side, on the other hand, wanted to get the fuck away. Magic isn't real. If it were real, then some unholy stuff took place.

"Hey, you alright?" The terrifyingly powerful girl asked, "I was on my way to complete some quest when I heard you screaming,"

"I-I'm gucci, no… no biggies," Liz's heart was still hammering in her chest as she stammered, "Alls I got is a few scrapes, nothin'... to … worry about," And down she went.

"H-hey!"

_**FUN FACT:**_

_**Blackouts Are a Very Common Thing for Liz. Don't Worry.**_

_**So Are Near-Death Experiences.**_

_**It Doesn't Make it any Easier, Though.**_

Things weren't looking good.

They haven't looked good in a while if Histoire was being honest.

Arfoire Syndicate of International Crime's, mainly known as ASIC, influence had grown to frightening amounts in the CPU's absence.

Hell, Guild Members have been trying their damndest to collect some shares, but sweet Celestia was it hard. They've barely gotten anything.

To make matters worse, it looked like ASIC has been receiving help from an outside source. The metal's they've been using for their factories had become much more durable, making them harder to destroy.

Histoire had determined that those metals were not from anywhere on Gamindustri. Not even Leanbox had stuff this strong.

A few phone calls with her coworkers confirmed her suspicions. If ASIC wasn't playing fair before, they definitely weren't now. The undercover guild agents had reported that another organization had been working with ASIC: Phoebe's Liberi.

So far, there wasn't much info about them. Just a group of individuals that have been supplying ASIC with metals in exchange for weapons. Where those weapons were going, no one knew.

But Histoire had her suspicions.

Her serene blue eyes scanned the pages of her book. Even if ASIC wasn't doing what she thought, this gave her an idea. A very crazy idea, for lack of better words.

IF had brought her to the basilicom.

"Compa, how's our guest doing?" She floated towards the pink-haired nurse,

"She's still sleeping, but she's been moving around a lot," Compa readjusted the girl's pillow for what seemed like the 100th time, "I think she might wake me up soon,"

Histoire studied the blonde.

She had long, pale blonde hair that was tied into a messy braid and dark, sun-kissed skin. Her height was nothing to be scoffed at. Judging from how Compa had to get a desk and put a pillow on it for the girl to rest her feet on, she's pretty close to being six feet, but she didn't fill out. Quite the lanky one.

So this is who fate has decided to help them.

"Nnhg," the girl's wince took Histoire from her thoughts, "Shit, my head," She sat up, rubbing her head. "What the hell happened?"

"Iffy said you fainted after a Fenrir chased you," Compa said like it was the most normal thing in the world

"..." the girl gave a blank expression, "... a what?"

"A big ol wolf,"

The girl gave a blank expression, "So… you're tellin' me that wasn't a hallucination?"

"Nope,"

"Ah…" the blond looked down and snorted, "Pfft, yeah right. And that fairy decoration over there's alive," she motioned towards Histoire, who had not moved.

This might startle the girl, but the tome found it necessary to make presence known "By definition, technically I am not alive, but I can assure you this is real,"

"WHAT THE-" and she jumped out of the bed, "STATIONARY SHOULDN'T TALK BACK!"

"Miss, please sit back down," Compa's gently grabbed the startled girl's arm and urged her down. Histoire merely floated closer.

"Back off, you Glossaryck wannabe," the girl raised her fist defensively, threatening to hit Histoire if she got closer.

"Please calm down and allow me to explain what's going on,"

"What do you mean?"

"But first, introductions are in order. I am Histoire, Tome of History and Oracle of Planeptune, and you are?"

"Uh… Elizabeth H. Leos…" She awkwardly introduced herself, but err'body just calls me Liz," She tried to imitate the way the tiny fairy had introduced herself, but realized that she hasn't really done much with her life, "uhh… Point Guard of the White Wolves and Center of the Aztec Lions,"

"I'm Compa, nice to meet you, Miss Leos!" The nurse happily introduced herself. Liz stared down at the young woman.

"Don't call me that," Liz almost snarled. She did _not_ want to be called by her sister's name.

"Lizzy," Compa sweatdropped. Even though the girl couldn't fight a low-level Fenrir, that did make her any less intimidating. Her loose clothing and how she towered over Compa's smaller frame made her look a bit like a gangster if Compa was being honest.

"Aight, I'm cool with that," Liz seemed satisfied with that and sat down on the bed, much to Histoire's relief.

"So the reason-" Liz cut the oracle off.

"Hol' up, where's my stuff?" Noticing her jacket and most of her belongings were missing from her person. Notably her phone and bag.

"Oh, they're right there," Compa pointed towards the door. Lo and behold, her jacket neatly folded on top of her bag while her phone charged.

"Aight, continue,"

Histoire huffed in mild annoyance before she started to explain, "The future of Gamindustri is in great peril. Our goddesses have been captured, and the Deity of Sin's worship has spread to a horrendous amount. You, Elizabeth Leos, are the one fate has chosen help,"

"Excuse me?" Liz rose a brow in perplexion, "It sounds like you need someone that can help, not..." She gestured to herself, "This?"

"There must be a reason why you were chosen,"

"Pfft," Liz snorted, "Quit pullin' my leg, I ain't what Game Industry needs,"

"Gamindustri," Histoire corrected, " And what makes you say that?" Histoire floated closer but kept her distance.

"Listen, you sound like you need someone… a hero, as lame as it sounds," the blonde stood up and paced around the room, "Like, a Herakles or Achilles, or somethin'," What were these ladies thinking? Choosing her? A useless orphan, "Not.. this," She gestured to her person.

"Elizabeth," Histoire's surprisingly gentle voice caused Liz to stop in her tracks, "I am very aware that this is very surprising and daunting, but…" She floated right in front of Liz, her eyes dead serious, "Please, Gamindustri is in desperate need of your aid,"

Liz was forced to stare into the intense ocean blue eyes of the Tome of History. For a moment, Histoire swore she saw a hint of a spark in the taller girl's electric blue eyes... She truly does believe Liz can help them.

"No," Too bad Liz doesn't agree.

**A/N:**

**Oh boy did this take me a while to write, but it's done. **

**So, what do I have to say? Nothing much really. I'm just happy to say I'm somewhat satisfied with this first chapter. I have like, five different versions of this story saved onto my computer, but I enjoy this one the most. **

**Without giving away too much, I based a lot of Liz's character of B-Rabbit and the dude that had the nerve to try and diss him. If you got the reference you're a real one. **

**Speaking of references, I made at least two of them. I like to think that my characters are made from parts of myself, so they're going to reference stuff I like. Not finna lie to y'all, whatever Liz is bopping to I can 110% promise you, I bop to it too. Hamilton is fucking lit. Fight me.**

**Originally, I was going to have Liz be an ancient spirit from a different world that was turned to stone and was banished to Gamindustri. But from when she was turned to stone to time she was freed, she couldn't remember who or what she represented: Chaos and Anarchy. I quickly realized that I couldn't really go anywhere with that, so I scrapped it. **

**Next up was an Admiral from a war-torn home, blinded by her own pride. I was going to have her, Admiral Uriel Athens, be as passionate and ill-tempered as possible, but cunning and calculating as well. In **_**another **_**version, Liz was actually going to be one of the Big Bads that eventually gets a redemption arc. No one's ever truly evil. Once again, I scrapped those. **

**The other versions involved a completely different main character, Andrea, but I scrapped her. I divided her into two and made two different characters.**

**Aight, that's it for now. See you beautiful bastards in the next chapter.**


	2. Chapter 2: A Song for a Sketchy Stranger

11

Chapter 2: A Song for a Sketchy Stanger

Hindsight is 20/20.

Wondering on her own in a world she's never been might not have been the best idea Liz's ever had, but her pride wouldn't let go back. Not after firmly rejecting HIistoire's pleads. She could feel a tinge of guilt in her gut but quickly shook it off. She couldn't even save herself. Had it not been for her Aunt Kai and Mr. Freeman, she'd probably be dead. What makes them she'd be of any use, let alone save this Gamindustri?"

"Better luck next time," And with that, she started to walk the streets of Planeptune.

…

…

…

Taking a few steps back, she stared at the window.

Is that a guitar?

"No fuckin' way," Liz couldn't believe it. She pressed her person on the window. An acoustic guitar. Right there. The shiny black wood showed her her reflection, urging her to buy it. Maybe she could buy it.

A quick look at the tag was enough to sour her mood.

Sunburned Acoustic Guitar DNM CXXVII

35 15000 credits.

She stared at the tag. What the hell's a credit? Yen?

So about 350 bucks.

Glancing around, she noticed quite a few men and women wearing what seemed to be expensive clothing and jewelry. There wasn't even a hint of dirt on any of their shoes. Much to her surprise, everyone possessed fair skin and neatly brushed smooth hair that varied intones. Very few reached up to her shoulders.

Taking a quick look over of herself: worn down blue jeans, a loose, white baseball jersey, and the black hat she was wearing backwards.

… Liz kind of looked like a thug, in all honesty. It's not her fault that most of her clothes were hand-me-downs.

"Damn, I stick out like a sore thumb," Eyeing the black guitar one more time she made her choice, "I don't intend to lose my streak,"

Walking into the store was the bad part. As much as Liz tried, she, unfortunately, still had this pesky thing called a conscience. Liz knew what she was doing was wrong, but it had helped her get by.

_Take if you can, give if you must,_ the comforting voice of Mr. Thomas, better known as Coach Freeman, rang in her head. As a coach, he taught her to run so fast she could give Jesse Ownes a run for his money. As a friend and father, he made sure Liz could always get by, even if food and money are tight.

A growl from her stomach reminded her of that last fact.

Hungry. If there was one thing that could define Liz, it was her eternal hunger. In a family of eight, there was never enough food to go around. It was probably the reason why she ended up so lanky.

"I need that guitar," This is a need. Besides, it's been marked down a little over 50%. Like anyone was going to be buying that anytime soon.

Walking in was the hard part.

Running was in her DNA.

_**FUN FACT: **_

_**Thomas Freeman:**_

_**A Good Man. Permanently Made Sure **_

_**That Liz Will Always Have at Least One Meal A Day.**_

_**Even when he's no longer around.**_

_**R.I.P**_

_**19XX-201X**_

Death ain't taking her away and neither are those damn guards.

Taking a quick look back, Liz smiled when she saw the guard give up his chase. Slowing down to a light jog, he fought off the urge to turn back and run circles around him.

She continued to lightly jog until she saw a park filled with children, teenagers, and adults alike.

Perfecto.

Taking a seat on a bench, Liz began to unpack the instrument. Sunburst guitars have such a cool color scheme. The black outlines gave the warm center a look like it was a piece of bread. A dark crust with a soft inside. She sighed happily when the smell of new graced her nose. Not a smell she gets to experience every day, sadly.

Carefully holding the guitar in her hands, Liz noticed it felt different than the one Kia lets her use. A jumbo, guitar. she believed. It made sense honestly, her tia was a big woman. People who thought Liz was tall are into a rude surprise when they meet Kia, aka Trent Brown's female counterpart.

Compared to that, Liz was only 5'9 and was much, _much_ thinner than Kia. So this one fit much better into her smaller hands. This one must be a dreadnought acoustic guitar, since it was too big to be a classic.

"_Shit,"_ the platinum blonde winced. A sharp pain in her empty stomach reminded her _why_ she had taken the guitar.

First, she strummed her chromatic scale, trying to get a feel for it.

"Do re mi fa sol la ti do~" She sang as she plucked the notes. A nice little warm-up.

She continued to lightly stum the stolen instrument, slowly shifting to a song she loved. No one here really knew her here, so there was no need to hide her talent. Lord forbid what Liz would do if Bug or Degi saw her.

"Home," from the _Undertale OST_ by Toby Fox. No lyrics, just the soft singing of the guitar.

It was always her go-to song when she couldn't think of anything to play, and she didn't even know why. May it was the part of the game that she loved. Being offered to be taken in, to be raised in a happy home, in a happy family. Don't get her wrong! She loves her home, her brother, Kai and her cousins. She wouldn't trade them for the world, but… they were damaged. Their home was built on a foundation of hurt. But hey, it what keeps'em together. United by their love and pain. No truer words could've been said.

By the time the song was over, the sound of light applause greeted her. Unsurprisingly, a small crowd of people had gathered around her. Liz lightly prayed that they

"Such lovely music,"

"It's no 5bp, but it's alright,"

"Y'know, anyone that can get my attention and hold deserves a little something,"

Small comments from the adults filled her ears as they dropped things into the case. To her surprise, instead of fives and ones, they were items. And cards.

"Uh… thank y'all?" Who the hell keeps cans in their pockets? Actually, Liz doesn't have any room to judge. She used to put nuggets into her pockets when there were extras and take them home. Shrugging her shoulders, she picked one up that said NEPBULL and took a sip.

"_PFFT_" And immediately spat it out when the awful taste of Redbull hit her tongue, "What the hell!" She stared at the in discussing. How dare it fool her!

Chunking the can into the trash can, she dug around the case. If they left drinks, then food couldn't be too far off the table.

"Yo, tall-ass," a raspy voice from behind demanded Liz's attention. Liz's attention from the case. Turning around

The blonde didn't pay any mind to it.

"Hey! I'm talkin' to y-" the voice was cut off.

"The _fuck_ you want," she sharply turned and glared down her agitator. Liz Dios was many things. A pushover was not one of them.

"Woah," the green-haired girl was momentarily caught off guard by Liz's intensity gaze, but quickly recovered, "This is my turf! So get the hell outta here,"

Liz stared at the shorter girl with annoyance. The girl had ashy gray skin and wore an oversized mouse hoodie, but her intense red eyes immediately caught Liz's attention. She's never seen red eyes before. They're a lot less demonic than T.V made them out to be. They're actually kinda cool. Cool eyes aren't enough of a reason to tell Liz what to do.

"Nah, dude,"

"What did you say?"

"Damn, you deaf? I said no," Turning back around, back down, she began plucking at the guitar.

"Listen, _bitch_." the girl growled, "I dunno who you are, but like hell-" a hand grabbed her by the hood. Being grabbed was one thing, getting effortlessly lifted into the air was another. Fearful reds stared into icy blues.

The girl tried to kick herself free, but Liz's grip never faltered. Oh, goddesses. This is how she dies, isn't it? By picking a fight with the wrong person. The girl braced for a punch that never came.

A good minute passed before Liz finally broke and let out a playful snort. Putting the girl down, Liz let loose a trail of giggles and chuckles. I

"H-hey! Stop laughing!" the girl demanded feeling the heat on her cheeks increase steadily as she began kicking again.

"Y-you should've seen… see the look on y-your face!" tears threatened to come out as she rolled in laughter, "_Sweeeet Jeeessus_, I needed that,"

"You gonna let me go?"

"Nnope," Liz smiled at the girl's annoyed expression. Not big and bad now, are ya? Without thinking, Liz let her mouth run loose, "Give me a name to that pretty face, and I just might," She immediately regretted those words as soon as they exited. Ew. That sounded kind of rape-y. The blonde let the girl go and grabbed the guitar, "Uh, sorry. That came out wrong,"

"No shit,"

"I'd be cool if you'd tell me your name tho,"

"You bipolar or something? I swear just a second ago you were going to kill me,"

"C'mon, you called me a bitch. I wasn't gonna let that slide with anyone,"

"Just call me Linda,"

"Hola, Linda, m'name's Liz," Liz gave a toothy grin and went back to strumming the guitar, ignoring Linda's grumpy mood.

"Dude, you're weird," Linda deadpanned.

"Dope,"

A couple of songs passed, Liz only stopping every few minutes to thank those who dropped items in her case. She silently wished that at least some of these things were valuable.

Red eyes landed on Liz's case. It was mostly filled with tradable items. Though not worth much on their own, this amount could add up to quite a few credits, and the blonde wasn't really paying too much attention to her. Something told her that that would probably be a bad idea. She saw how fast the taller girl had run. It takes some speed to be able to outrun a guard like the one that had been chasing her.

A loud growl pulled Linda from her thoughts. At first, she assumed it was a dog, but there were none nearby, "Did you say something?"

Turning around, she noticed that Liz was no longer playing, instead, she was holding her stomach as her stomach let out another sickly growl

"Fuck, dude, you good?"

"_Fuck_," Liz hissed, "I'm fucking starvin',"

"Me too," As she spoke, her stomach let out a growl of its own. Reaching down into the pile of items, Linda pulled out a can of Nepsi.

"Help me get some cash or food,"

"Hmm," the red-eyed girl took a sip, "What's in it for me?"

"Uh…," Liz should've been expecting this, "I'll sing ya a song?" A sharp glare from the girl, " and… uh, you want half of this?" That got her attention.

"We can trade some of this for some credits,"

"Where tho?"

"I know a guy,"

_**~*~*~*~A quick trade and Liz trying to see how much a credit is worth*~*~*~*~**_

Linda lied most of the time. This was not one of those times.

The amount of stuff Liz had collected had totaled to about 33k credits, more than enough to buy them a few cheap burgers at the local GreenDonalds.

While Linda only ordered 3 cheeseburgers, medium fries, and a medium drink, Liz got 7 spicy chickens, large fries, 20pc nuggets, and a large drink. And Linda had thought she had a big appetite. The cashier's eyes almost popped out by the time Liz finished placing her order.

The two shared little words as they scarfed down their meals, both using their arms to cover their meals. As if someone was going to come and try to take them.

"You really finna eat all that?" Unsurprisingly, Linda finished first.

"I haven't eaten since yesterday mornin',"

"I'm gonna laugh if you throw up,"

"I'll make sure to aim for you then," Liz took a sip of her drink. She had no idea what on earth she was drinking, but it had the vague taste of Sprite.

"So, what's your story?" Linda asked out of boredom as she took a sip of her drink.

"Wut?"

"I saw you steal the guitar. No way was that your first time,"

"Grew up with a big family in a bad neighborhood," Liz slowed down her chewing, "Never scrapped enough money for enough food, so when I was hungry, I'd go to the gas station and take some. I was caught once,"

"That's it?"

"Yep. Kai had like five kids growing kids, sometimes eight on bad nights. Most of the time we had beans and rice," Liz took finished her fifth burger, "What about you?"

"Eh. Almost the same. Grew up in a bad neighborhood. Ever get involved in gangs?"

"No," The lie came out with ease, "Coach never lets us get involved with gang wars," That was true. When Thomas was alive, they stayed away from the shadier stuff, but things changed when he died. Like hell if those bastards were going to get away with that. "You?"

"Mostly petty crimes," Linda stole a fry from, "So about that song,"

"I was hopin you'd forget,"

'Nah, I wanna song,"

"I gave you like.. How much was it?"

"11.5 thousand credits, but I wanna song. That was the deal,"

"Fuck you,"

"You wish," a smug grin plastered itself on the girl's face.

"No, not really," Liz gave an equally shit-eating grin of her own.

"You gonna play or not?"

Liz rolled her eyes, "Not in here," finishing her fries and nuggets, she put the remaining chicken burgers in her backpack. They left the burger joint.

As they walked on the streets, a song came into Liz's brain, "You know that scene in _Shrek_ where everyone's like, really sad?"

"What the fuck is _Shrek_?" Oh Linda, you ignorant fool.

"I- nevermind," Pulling the stolen instrument from the case, "Just listen," Liz began to gently strum the chords to "Hallelujah". A painfully simple song, but one of Liz's favorites. "_It goes like this, the fourth, the fifth,_" She played those cords, "_Minor fall and the major lift_," That, and it literally has the chords written in the lyrics.

She got to the chorus. "_Hallelujah_, _Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah,_" She continued to sing.

"Fuck," Until Linda decided to interrupt her, "Hey uhh. Nice singin'! Gotta scram," and she was gone.

"Wierd," Liz simply shrugged and began to put the guitar back up.

"Look at you, already making friends," a _very_ familiar voice spoke, "Though I kinda wish it wasn't with shady folks,"

"You," Liz stared wide-eyed. The girl who'd saved her from the giant ass wolf. She suddenly felt slightly guilty for stealing the instrument. It quickly faded away when she remembered that her stomach wasn't empty.

"Yep. Name's IF. Nice to properly meet you," She eyed the instrument suspiciously, "I don't remember you having a guitar before,"

**A/N: **

**Man, the first few chapters really are the hardest part, aren't they? I know where I wanna go, I just gotta find my way. I have my hit points made, I just needa hit those points. **

**I'm not finna. I did not expect anyone to click on this story. So, it was a nice surprise to see some folks viewed it, but I was shocked when a few **_**followed**_** it. Y'all some crazy sons of guns. **

**Incognito, fam, I love your profile pic. I was looking at It took me way too long to figure out why, though. **_**Tom and Jerry**_** memes man, they get me every time. And I can't believe the dude that's writing **_**A Bond of Power**_** is not only following this horrible concept of a trainwreck, fuckin' **_**favorited**_**. Wild. Just wild. **

**Just a heads up, I write these little A/N while I'm writing the chapter, just to let you dudes know what was one my mind as I go along making changes, and to remind myself what changes I made when I have to leave and come back. **

**Aight, so this chapter was originally going to be named "Music is My Language", but quickly changed it to "Song for a Sketchy Stranger," cuz I'm a sucker for alliteration. That, and then I was reminded while reading my outline that Linda was going to be making her appearance, so yeah! Also, instead of stealing the guitar, Liz was originally going to pickpocket a random businessman. I can't remember why I changed it, though. Damn. **

**It's weird using Linda instead of Underling. Guess it's just something imma have to get used to, though. **

**So I was listening to a specific playlist of artists when I was making Liz's characters. Eminem, Machine Gun Kelly, Nicky Jam, Luis Fonsi, and Old Dominion songs (old enough) were the most prominent. So yeah, because of this Liz I made Liz be of mixed heritage, half mix (Mexican and African American) and caucasian, she was born and raised in Houston, Texas. Technically, she has the n-word pass.**

**I really don't plan on the whole gang thing to go anywhere. Just a piece of Liz's childhood. **

**Aight, so that's it for now. **

**P.S I was watching Rebirth 2's gameplay to remind myself what the hell happened and... is it me or is Neptune mental? Cuz some of the lines she says are just batshit insane**… **I can't wait to write her. Props to Melissa Fahn cuz damn. I can't remember why, but I remember never being too fond of Neptune.**

_**What a fool I was**_**. **


	3. Chapter 3: Exposition Time

Chapter 3: Exposition Time

"I don't remember you having a guitar before," Stern greens stared into confident blues.

_Fuckin' shit_.

"Yeah, I know," the words flowed smoothly from Liz's mouth, " bought it a few hours ago. Pretty cool, innit?" She swung the guitar to her back, "I got it a few hours ago,"

"Oh really?" IF wasn't convinced.

"Yeah, I traded my uh...," A glance at her hand, _that fucking hoe_, " My ring for it," She's going to kill Linda.

"Hmm,"

"I know!" the thief's voice slightly cracked. She tried with all her might to keep her eye from twitching. _Karma's a hoe,_ Liz silently thought, _She's a big hoe._

The agent just narrowed her eyes. What kind of idiot did this hoodlum take her for? Anyone with two brain cells can link one and one together. Liz just gave a toothy grin at IF's suspensions.

"Alright," IF eventually gave in, deciding to drop it, for now. There were bigger problems to deal with right now than petty crimes., "C'mon. It's getting late," Like making sure the blonde doesn't end up sleeping out in the cold.

"Where you tryna take me?"

"You need a place to stay, don't you?" IF asked as she walked ahead, "Compa offered to let us crash at her place for the night,"

Liz didn't know what to think, "Uh… that's nice of her,"

"That's Compa for you," the guild agent gave a small smile, "Always trying to help when she can,"

"She's…" Liz scratched her head in thought, trying to recall who this Compa was. She was never good at remembering faces, "A nurse, right?"

"Yep,"

"Oh!" Liz snapped her fingers, "I remember her now! She was that lady in the room with the floating book fairy,"

"Yep. She was checking up on you after you fainted,"

"Oh. So that's why I was in there," Liz wondered how she ended up in the bed, "Did you take me there?'

"Histoire told me to bring you to the basilicom after I found you," IF explained, "I didn't notice any damage on you, so I didn't take you to a hospital,"

"That's a good thing," She slightly shook at the thought. Hospitals weren't Liz's favorite place to be. Pushing down the thought, she tried to laugh it off" Lord knows what I woulda done if I woke up in a hospital," She muttered the last part under her breath.

"You say something?"

"Nothin'"

The two walked through the capital of Planeptune in comfortable silence. IF never really enjoyed pointless small talk. She'd rather stay quiet than pollute the air with pointless noise.

Liz, on the other hand, was just vibing with her music. She closed her eyes and walked on beat with the bass. It kept her from mumbling the words under her breath. A small smile spread on her face as the singer strummed his guitar. It brought back memories of her sitting in front of Kia as she braided her hair when she was younger. For this reason alone, she placed "Camisa Negra" in a very special place in her heart.

"What you listening to?"

"Uh…" Not that she'd ever let anyone know that, "Rap,"

_**FUN FACT:**_

_**ELIZABETH IS **_

_**A BITCH ASS **_

_**TSUNDERE**_

"And we're here," IF announced as they stopped in front of an apartment complex.

Liz studied the area with curious eyes. The building was nowhere near as rundown as her home was, but it wasn't too fancy either. It reminded her of Jonathan's home. Nice and simple.

"Compa's place is the third one on the second floor,"

"We don't need to buzz in?"

"Nope. C'mon. She's probably waiting on us,"

After a few more minutes of walking, IF knocked on the door. It only took Compa a few seconds to open the doors.

"Yay! You're here," The beauty immediately pulled IF into a tight hug.

Liz stared at Compa, caught completely off guard. She didn't really look at Compa before. How'd she not notice her beauty before?

"H-hey Compa," IF managed to squeeze out,

"Heya," Liz waved, an awkward smile on her face. She winced internally as she felt a hint of heat flow on her face.

"Oh!" Compa released IF from her grip when she noticed the tall girl, "Hi Lizzy! I'm glad you're here too!" She beamed with a friendly smile. What a cutie, "C'mon. Dinner's almost ready,"

"I- uh," Liz stuttered, "Uh, Yeah! Thank ya for letting me crash for the night," She recovered, but she couldn't keep her eyes from wandering. _How… How do they even get that big?_

"I couldn't let you sleep on the streets,"

"Still, thanks," IF said when finally caught her breath. Compa's stronger than she looks.

"No problem!" Compa eyes lit up as a 'ding' went off, "That means the turkey's done," the hurried off to the kitchen, "C'mon! I can't eat it all by myself,"

A delectable smell came soon after. It crept up Liz's nose began to tease her taste buds. She could practically _taste_ it. The tantalizing smell urged her forward, and she complied, before being jerked back by IF.

"Don't be rude," she scolded lightly, "Take your shoes off,"

"... What?"

"Take them off, Liz,"

"Uh…" Liz stared down at IF, who had already taken her boots off, "Okay," She complied, deciding not to put up a fight when food was at risk. Slipping off her worn shoes off, she wiggled her toes. The girl felt weirdly naked despite the fact she was still wearing her socks.

"There," IF gave Liz a small smile, "Now we can go," IF headed towards the dining room with Liz following right after

Nothing could have prepared Liz emotionally. Her mouth watered at the sight. An abundant amount of food laud on the table. Turkey, mash potatoes, peas, corn on the cob, rolls, and a few other dishes she didn't recognize. She's only ever seen this absurd amount of food in cartoons. Compa clapped her hands.

"Let's dig in!" The nurse passed the plates, Liz barely resisting it as she took a seat.

Did this lady think they were going to finish this?

Prob'ly not. Was Liz going to try?

Hell yes.

The small plate did little to faze Liz. Serving herself three scoops of mashed potatoes and a generous slice of turkey breast, rolls, and two cobs of corn (like a true American) she could just _taste_ the food from the heavenly smell alone. A bite from the potatoes set her taste buds on fire. She quickly began to devour the food.

"This is really good!" Liz said through a mouthful of food. Gordan Ramsey couldn't compare.

"I'm glad you think so, Lizzy,"

"Don't talk with your mouthful,"

Liz quickly shut up and ate her food before serving herself more. IF was a tad bit surprised, to say the least. She thought Neptune could eat. Compa was just flattered that Liz enjoyed her food so much.

"Slow down! You're gonna end up choking if you eat too fast," IF warned.

"But ish sho bood,"

"What did I tell you about eating with your mouth full?"

"Iffy, you're such a mom," Compa giggled, earning IF's embarrassment in return.

"D-don't say that!" the agent stuttered, falling into Compa'a trap.

"So, Lizzy," Compa decided to leave IF be, for now, "What's your world like?"

Just as she was about to answer, IF sent a glare, and Liz made sure the swallowed her food, "Nothin' interestin', Earth ain't got nothin' on this place," she poked her greens with a fork. "Just an ordinary place," Green beans. Her old enemy.

Liz didn't consider herself a picky eater since she always ate everything on her plate. Nopalitos, liver and onions, beans, steamed broccoli, and even pig feet, she fucking _ate_. Food's food in her book. But green beans. Those fuckers filled her body with a disgust like no other.

"Ordinary for us and you are two very different things," IF said, "We get monsters attacks every Tuesday,"

"I-" Liz stared wide-eyed, "That's gotta be rough,"

IF just shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly "It's more annoying than anything,"

"You kinda get used to it after a while," Compa sweat-dropped, "I guess there are no monsters where you're from?"

"I guess some humans, but that's about it. The scariest thing I ever worry about is getting a nuked outta nowhere"

"Nuked?" IF asked, "Like a nuclear bomb?"

"Yeah, but I guess that's just paranoia more than anything," The thief put a hand to her chin in thought, "The worst I have to actually worry about is getting shot or kidnapped on my way to school,"

"Why would that even be a concern?"

"I live in a bad part of Houston. Lucky me, I look like a dude, so getting shot is what I look out for,"

"That's awful!" Compa clasped her hands together, squishing her large breasts together by proxy (Much to Liz's and even IF's joy). The nurse never really understood how anyone could be so cruel. She doesn't want to understand.

"Yeah, but what can you do?" Liz kept poking at the beans, not knowing what to do with them. Kai isn't here to yell at her, so she could probably throw them away. But that'd be rude, and Compa's been nothing less than a sweet and pleasant host. If only Alex was here. He'd probably eat them.

"Where'd you grow up?" IF decided to change the subject. The last thing she wanted was for Compa to start crying. The agent could already see tears forming in her beautiful eyes.

"I was born and raised in Houston with my brother, Alex. Dad lost custody and we moved in with a family friend Nothin' really insterstin'," She really didn't really want to talk about her childhood.

"Your dad lost custody?" That piqued IF's interest.

The blond stopped poking the beans. It took her a moment to respond, "Yeah, that happens when someone gets arrested," She went back to poking the greens, "And before you ask, it was because of the ownership and trafficking of illegal drugs," the girl's tone was awfully cold.

"_Oh_." Now that wasn't what IF was expecting. Drug trafficking, huh. The agent was no stranger when it came to the darker ways of the world. Drug abuse. And when a child's involved… "I'm sorry,"

"Don't say sorry for somethin' you didn't do,"

"So, your mom?" Compa asked though she had a feeling that she already knew.

"I dunno, she left a few months after Alex was born, I was about two," Her tone remained neutral, but there was a slight hint of pain to it, "I spent a lot of time at my friends house, though," A small smile appeared on her face, "They took me an Alex in after dad got caught,"

"Were you adopted?" Compa guessed, a small amount of relief to enter. From what little she knew about Lizzy, she can guess that despite the hardships, she turned out good. After all, Histoire summoned her for a reason.

"Yeah, I guess so," the blonde mused, "Kai's basically my mom, and Andre and Jasmine are my little siblings at this point. Pretty sure Alex feels the same I also did sports and stuff. Track, basketball, and baseball to list some. I woulda done football, but I liked marchin' band more,"

"Ahh, so you're a sport's all-star, huh?" IF teased.

"Yep! Got a state patch for all of 'em," Liz proudly boasted, "My letterman jacket it decorated,"

"I'm guessing that's the reason you eat so much," Compa assumed, "And you don't have to eat the beans if you don't want them. Feel free to get yourself another plate,"

"Yesss," Liz fist pumped in glee, but quickly corrected herself "I mean, uh, thanks, and it's part of the reason. I also have a high metabolism. So I gotta eat a lot,"

"Must be rough on the fridge,"

"Oh yeah. You think I eat a lot. Alex eats more. Dude's a bottomless pit,"

"He's an athlete too?"

"Yep, he's only 14, but he's as tall as me but fuckin' huge," Liz extended her arms to try and show how wide he was, "He's not fat, just swole… buff," She added when she got odd looks, "His beard's starting to come in, too"

"Woah!" Compa's eyes lit up, in wonder.

"You younger brother sounds like a full-grown man,"

"Yeah," she chuckled, "Dude turned into a man when he was 10," She decided to ask her own question, "Aight, my turn. Y'all seem like functional young adults. What do you two do for a livin'?"

"I'm a nurse,"

"And I'm an agent for the guild,"

"Huh, is that why you kicked that wolf to the ground?"

"Uh yeah," IF said nervously, "I normally can't do that. I only was able to do it because it was really set on you,"

"I-" Liz froze. IF really took a gamble on Liz's life, "Well.. at least it worked, right?"

"Yeah,"

"Lizzy, do you want any more food," Compa cut in, noticing Liz's plate was almost empty.

"Yes!" Liz beamed, a moment of thought, "I mean, yes please,"

The trio ate their dinners in relative silence with a small comment here and there. Much to Compa's joy, there were few leftovers, courtesy of Liz's appetite. The nurse made a mental note to remember this for future nights.

The ticking of the clock passed as Liz laid in bed, wide awake, much to her annoyance.

_When's the last time this happened?_ She thought as she shifted in the small bed. Her eyelids felt heavy, but they wouldn't stay closed.

Maybe it was the bed and blankets. Their small sizes weren't something she was used to. The blanket barely did its job. Her feet were left exposed to the cold air, so she had to curl up in the bed that was made for someone much smaller. It honestly felt like the bed was struggling to hold her weight. It creaked with every small shift Liz made.

It could also be the clothing she was wearing. Compa refused to let Liz go to bed without showering. Liz had declined, of course, she didn't have anything to change into, but Compa insisted that she'd sleep better if she was washed. When she came out of the shower, the nurse gave her a pair of sweatpants and a shirt. Both of which fit her hilariously wrong in so many ways: they were too short and the bust of the shirt was ludicrously large. Sadly, this made them rather uncomfortable.

"Fuuuuck." Liz groaned in frustration. Finally giving up, she threw the pillow to the floor. It wouldn't be the first time she had to take the floor, so it didn't really bother her. She also ditched the shirt, choosing to just sleep in the sweatpants and sports bra.

Which proved to be a mistake the moment her stomach touched the freezing floor.

"JesusfuckinChrist!" She shot back up, hissing from the unexpected coolness. After a few minutes of waiting, she laid back down.

The coolness felt more comforting this time around.

"Much better~" she cooed. Between the floor or a small bed, she preferred a hammock, but if she had to choose, she'd choose the floor. A small bed is just annoying and uncomfortable, at least the floor was spacious enough for her to lay down on her stomach.

Hugging the soft pillow, Liz tried to fall asleep.

After a few minutes of waiting, she just banged her head on the bed and knocked herself out.

….

She might have a concussion now.

_**A Dream?**_

Long, golden hair that fell just passed her shoulders, lightly tanned skin, and dark clothing. Put it all together and… it's not Liz.

At least, this didn't look like Liz. She felt like Liz, but this wasn't her.

She rode alone in the dark woods on a horse, wearing what felt like a bored expression. She wore dark armor with a black coat. There were several things wrong with this image.

First, since when did she own a horse? Secondly, why was she dressed like a character from _Game of Thrones_ or _The Witcher_? Lastly, who was she?

_This is a weird lucid dream,_ she thought. The teen had lucid dreams before, but this one was first. She couldn't really control what she was doing, she was just aware of her surroundings.

Like dreaming a memory, or watching through someone else's eyes.

"Stop," She ordered her horse in a voice that wasn't hers. This one sounded older, more mature. A baritone to her tenor. They halted a few meters from a cave, "There it is," hoping off the horse, Liz(?) grabbed two steel swords from the saddle and secured them on her back.

"Stay 'ere," This one also sounded mildly British.

Carefully entering the dark cave, she scanned her surroundings.

_What am I looking for?_

Carefully walking deeper and deeper in the cave, she could still see clearly every small rock and hole on the floor.

"C'mon. Where are ya?" She whispered in annoyance, not noticing the tentacle approaching her from behind.

Tightly wrapping itself around her ankle, it quickly pulled back, making her smash her head against the rocks

"Lizzy!"

Liz awoke to a worried Compa, "Ohh, fuck" she winced as a sharp pain went through her head.

"Oh thank goodness you're okay," Compa let out a breath of relief, "I thought I was going to have to take you to the hospital,"

"Ain't you a nurse?' she groaned, rubbing her head. Maybe slamming her head against the bed wasn't a good idea. She hardly felt rested.

"A nurse isn't the same as a doctor!"

"Did not know that,"

"Hey, Lizzy?"

"Mmm, what?"

"Why were you on the ground,"

"I fell off the bed," Liz swore she heard Compa try to hold back a laugh.

"Hey, Compa, are my clothes clean?"

"Yep, they're on the bed,"

"Thank ya,"

"Hey you two, hurry up!" IF shouted from the hallway, "We're already running late!"

"Okay!" the nurse called back. After pulling Liz up checking her head for bruises, Compa exited the room to let the teen get dressed.

Liz performed some mental gymnastics to convince herself that she didn't enjoy the feeling of the nurse running her soft hands through her hair (and that she doesn't have a concussion). She definitely did not find the feeling enjoyable. Nope. Not at all.

Quickly getting dressed and putting her cap on, the blonde ran to meet the duo at the exit.

Once again, the sleek, futuristic look of the city memorized the teen. She always thought tall buildings that dominated the urban areas of her city always scarred and scraped the lights of the skyscrapers and buildings always shone so bright to the point that she wondered whether it was the middle of the day or night. She never enjoyed those parts of the city, but she

But here, oh sweet Jesus.

Those Yankees got nothin' on this place. Admiring the sleek, beautiful white, blue and purple buildings-

"Oh _fuck!"_ Liz almost didn't notice the end of the sidewalk, causing the two shorter girls to bump into her,

"Ouch!"

"What the hell Liz? Why'd you stop?"

"Ain't nowhere to go!" Liz pointed to the non-existent sidewalk, "Oh god, It's_ Where the Sidewalk Ends_,"

"What? No," IF took a few steps forward, and a platform appeared under her feet, "See? It's fine."

"I- woah,"

"C'mon Lizzy, Histy's waiting for us,"

"Histy?"

"That's Histoire, but Compa just calls her Histy," IF explained, pulling Liz onto the platform, "And Compa's right, we're already running late,"

"How'd that happen?"

"It took Compa awhile to get you up," IF eyed Liz suspiciously.

Liz just offered a nervous grin. Hopefully, she's not getting the wrong idea. Compa was just trying to get her out of a coma.

"Anyway," IF changed the subjected, "Histoire said she wants to discuss some things with you,"

"Is it about getting me home?"

"Yep,"

"Ah," Liz sighed, "Listen, I'm really sorry about not being able to help y'all,"

"I get it, really," IF reassured, "Asking a stranger to help save the CPUs and the world is a lot,"

"Iffy's right. You said so yourself, magic doesn't even exist in your world," Compa paused, thinking with a contemplating expression, "Makes me wonder how things get done without magic,"

"Well, technology is a big thing, but it ain't nowhere near as advance or as cool as things are here, we still haven't fully figured out how to use magnetic frequencies for hoverboards yet," Liz paused for a moment, "The democracy failed the moment Andrew Jackson was elected, racial and social status are shaky at best, and human rights are currently getting stomped on, but hey, as long as we have the second amendment, damn everything else," Sarcasm dripped from Liz's voice on the last part, "Magic might just make things worse honestly. Wrong dude gets a hold of it them BOOM! 9/11 looks like a joke," IF and Compa gave Liz confused looks, "Oh, sorry, went on a tangent. It's just I get heated when it comes to politics,"

"I take it politics are messy in your world?"

"Yeah, but where are they not?"

"You got a point," IF sighed, "Look, taking the moving sidewalk got us here faster. Who would've thought,

"Shut it,"

"Iffy, don't tease Lizzy,"

"Yeah, _Iffy_, don't tease me,"

"I-"

"That goes for you too, Lizzy,"

"Aw man," Liz grumbled, for some reason, getting scolded by Compa felt like getting yelled at by a coach. It doesn't feel good. "Sorry, _Iffy_,"

"Right back at ya, _Lizzy_"

Compa proudly puffed her chest, "That's better,"

The trio entered the basilicom quietly and rode up the elevator the same.

Liz used this time to prepare herself to meet the tiny fairy. She felt bad, she really did. If there was some way for her to help, she would've done it, but…

She's just a human. An athlete with a talent with instruments, but still.

She's not like those heroes she grew up admiring in the movies and legends. She's no Heracles, no Achilles, no Atalanta. Hell, even human characters could do shit. Hawkeye and Black Widow kept up a god. Captain America and Bucky were super soldiers. Iron Man was a genius. Under his suit, Clark Kent keeps his outfit.

Liz isn't the type that it fits.

She eyed the two women in front of her. They can do stuff she can only dream of doing. They had magic.

Liz clenched her fist in frustration. Here's a chance to do something greater than herself, to be a hero like in one of those stories Kia would tell her, and her own humanity limited her.

It pissed her off.

The opening of the elevator's door took Liz out of her thoughts. Welcoming them to was no other than Histoire herself,"

"Hey, Histoire,"

"Hi, Histy,"

"G'afternoon, ma'am,"

"Good afternoon to you, ladies l," the oracle greeted them warmly, "Thank you for escorting Elizabeth,"

"Oh, It was nothing, Histy," Compa waved off the thank you, "Really, it's not like we don't come here every day anyway,"

"Still, it would be rude of me not to thank you, you offered to house Elizabeth,"

"Oh, Histy, it was nothing," Compa once again waved off the fairy, "Besides the loud thump in the night, Lizzy was a wonderful guest! She loved the meal I cooked,"

Liz only gave an awkward smile, Maybe eating five plates was overboard, but in her defense, she's only ever seen that amount of food in movies. Not even Kia made that much.

"It's good here that you were treated well,"

"Uh… yeah, Compa was a lovely host. And her cookin' was the best I've ever eaten," If Liz could hide behind Compa, she would've, "So about gettin' me home?"

"I suppose there's no way to convince you?" Histoire asked,

"I'm sorry, I really am, but," Liz gave a deep sigh, "I'm just a human. IF and Compa could do more than I ever could,"

"I can't force you," Histoire sighed, "but currently I cannot send home you right away, but I might be able to in three months,"

"THREE MONTHS!?" The two women and fairy covered their ears from Liz's explosion. \

"Please do not yell!"

"Oh goddess, I think my ear's bleeding,"

"Ouchies!" Compa winced, "My ears are ringing!"

"Oh, uh, sorry," Liz quickly calmed down, "I'm sorry but why three months specifically?"

Histoire took a few seconds recovered from her eardrums exploding, "A small robbery caused the little shares that we had to drop even lower,"

Oh shit. Liz's crime came back to bite her in the ass.

"Is there any way speed it up a bit?"

The oracle put a finger to her chin in thought, "Perhaps if we can get them back up, I can get you back in three weeks,"

"Three weeks sounds better," Liz gave a happy sigh, "So how do I do that?"

"But I thought you said-"

"I said-" Liz interrupted, "I can't help ya rescue y'all's goddesses, but I do want to get back home, so how can I get more of that… Sharin' energy?"

"Share Energy," corrected the tome, "and it's the manifestation of the faith that humans have in the goddesses,"

"Yeah, that, how can I get them back up?"

"Doing a few quests can, but I don't think you-"

"Quest" Liz's brain got turning, "My gamer brain thinks there's a place for that… a guild?"

"Yes, but how did you-"

"Iffy, you know where I can sign up for the guild?"

"Dude, you're going to get yourself killed," IF deadpanned, "And you don't get to call me Iffy,"

"Listen, linda, I'm not tryna wait three weeks to get home," Liz put her hands on her hips, "If there's any way to speed this thing up, I'll take it,"

"Elizabeth, I must warn you that-"

"Yeah yeah, monster be wild, I get that," Liz shrugged off the fairy's concerns, "I can handle lil' things tho, like… I dunno, bet there're some buggers I can stomp on and kill,"

"Dogoos?" Compa suggested

"What're those?"

"Small jelly-like dogs, but they're not really that dangerous. Unless they're in a group,"

"Awesome, can we start now? Please?" Liz begged,

"You're eager to get killed,"

"I want to go home so y'all can get someone to actually help,"

Histoire noted this sudden change of attitude. Just a few moments ago, Elizabeth was discouraged. Frustrated even, but now, the teenager looked all too to start a fight.

Maybe it was because all Elizabeth had to do was a few quests instead of having the fate of the world placed on her shoulders? It may also be that she does believe she can do enough low-level quest to get Planeptune at 10% of the world shares. Whatever it was, it pleased the oracle that the young lady was eager to help Planeptune raise shares, even if she just wanted to go home.

"There are currently no available quests in Planeptune, so as much as it pains me to say this, but you might have to go to the other nations and do quests there," Histoire floated back with a hopeful expression.

Maybe, just maybe, doing these quests might make Elizabeth change her mind. There must be a reason she was the one that Histoire summoned.

"Which ones closest?"

"Technically, Leanbox, but going by ship would take to long,"

"How about Lastation?" Compa suggested, happy to Liz so excited over hunting dogoos,

"To Lastation!"

Dark, brown eyes stared at the beautiful, star-covered sky. Kai always did prefer the night over the day. Each and every star was placed with a purpose, whether it was to help humans find their way or to tell a story. Some filled the woman's chest with pride, while others filled her with sorrow.

But the moon?

It filled her with a shame like no other.

It told her a story that never should have happened. It told her that it wasn't over.

Kai could only sigh as she saw that the wolf in the moon was missing.

Pulling her phone from her pocket, she dialed an old friend

"_Kai!"_ The deep, joyful voice beamed, "_My friend! What has brought you to call me this late into the night?"_

"I- it's... She's," taking a moment to compose herself, she spoke in a solemn voice "She's escaped, Thor."

"_What."_

"She's back. We're out if time,"


End file.
